When Rob Leahy designed a holster system built specifically "for men doing manly things," it only seemed appropriate to name it after the legendary Marine Lt. Gen. Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller.
Leahy, who served as a private first class in the Army, owns Simply Rugged Holsters in Prescott, Arizona. He designed "The Chesty Puller," a conversion system that allows a wearer to holster a weapon on their chest or under their arm, with bear country in mind.
Imagine using a few weeks of leave and heading to the Alaskan backwoods for the fly fishing trip of your dreams. As you reel in your first salmon, you realize someone — or something — is eyeing your prize. A 1,200 pound Kodiak brown bear tears from the bushes with murder in its eyes.
That's the type of experience that prompted Leahy to create a holster system that would allow him to reach his pistol faster.
"I came up with the idea of a chest harness for my belt holster while reaching inside my neoprene waders for my .44 [-caliber pistol] as a brown bear came across the Russian River in Alaska," he said. "I had an instant image of this bear rolling me around with one of my arms stuck inside my waders. I knew there had to be a better way."
Fortunately for Leahy, the bear stopped short and turned around. But the incident led to a new product idea.
Instead of creating a dedicated chest holster, Leahy said he opted to make a strap system that adapted his existing pancake holster design. That would allow his customers to have one holster for multiple uses, he said.
Nick Stone models the Chesty Puller System, which allows the wearer to holster a weapon on the chest or under the arm.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Rob Leahy
By naming the holster system after Puller, the legendary five-time Navy Cross recipient who fought his way into the history books across the Caribbean and later the Pacific during World War II, Leahy said he was also paying tribute to another man. His grandfather served in the Marine Corps alongside Puller.
Leahy said his granddad, George Rehberg, never spoke much about his years in uniform, but he served in Haiti, Nicaragua and Hawaii in the 1930s. He left active duty before Dec. 7, 1941, and the U.S. entrance into World War II, but he signed up for the Reserve.
One of the few things he ever mentioned about his time in the Corps was Chesty Puller and how much he admired the man, Leahy said.
"I wanted to remember and honor General Puller in some way, to help other people understand who he was," he said. "I like the discipline and warrior spirit instilled in the Marines."
The Puller holster system can be purchased online for $66, is available for left- or right-handed carry and comes in oxblood, tan or black.
Leahy also sells a Ka-Bar-like knife called the Leatherneck for $70.
"Today, after two centuries of personal sacrifice on and off the battlefield, our Leathernecks enjoy the love, respect, and admiration of every true American and it is to them we dedicate this series of battle ready knives," the knife description states.
For more details, visit www.simplyrugged.com.
